THE Ministry of Manpower (MOM) seems to be stepping up efforts against the unacceptable housing of foreign workers, having already made 300 inspections in the first four months of the year.
The figure was revealed in a post on the Ministry's blog yesterday.
That is more than a third of the 865 inspections that were conducted the whole of last year, when the Ministry took action against 1,062 employers.
They were either warned, fined or charged in court.
This year, 428 employers have been taken to task so far.
In yesterday's blog post, senior housing enforcement officer Yusri Mohammed Ali advised the public on how to help alert the authorities.
The public should try to provide specific information, such as the address of the place, a description of living conditions, and the estimated number of workers. They should also try to take a photograph.
Noting that the MOM receives about 20 tip-offs each week, Mr Yusri said: "Detailed information allows us to sieve the various tip-offs, and find out which ones require more immediate attention, and which may be false."
He added: "If we feel strongly about helping affected workers, it is important to understand that more specific information means more timely interventions."
The post related the story of an inspection of five dormitories in the Kaki Bukit Industrial Terrace area earlier this month, the result of a public tip-off.
The inspection found unacceptable conditions in all five, and the employers responsible were told that they could not house any more workers in the premises.
The employers were given notice to move their workers into proper housing within the next two to four weeks, even as the MOM investigates with other government agencies.
Anyone with information on unacceptable housing conditions can e-mail mom_fmmd@mom. gov.sg
